Dr. A. K. Abdul Momen, MP, Foreign Minister thanked the Intergovernmental Committee and the UNESCO Secretariat for supporting Bangladesh in inscribing Rickshaw and Rickshaw Painting in Dhaka as Bangladesh’s fifth element of Intangible Cultural Heritage. Today (Dec 14), at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he welcomed and received the credentials of Susan Vize, newly appointed Head of the UNESCO Office and UNESCO Representative to Bangladesh. Through Vize, Foreign Minister Momen also conveyed his appreciation to the World Heritage Committee and UNESCO Secretariat for recognizing Bangladesh’s efforts to protect the outstanding universal value of the Sundarbans and allowing six year timeline to submit the next State of Conservation report. Dr. Momen recalled with appreciation of UNESCO’s support for initiating this UNESCO-Bangladesh Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman International Prize in the field of Creative Economy. He also underscored Bangladesh’s commitment to engage more deeply with Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) Regional Committee for the Central Indian Ocean (IOC-INDIO) as the current Chair of the IOC.    The UNESCO representative to Bangladesh thanked Hon’ble Foreign Minister for accepting her credentials and noted that UNESCO always believed in strengthening its cooperation with Bangladesh. Foreign Minister Dr. Momen wished her success in delivering her responsibilities and assured her of all out support of the government in discharging her duties in Bangladesh. Susan Vize, a national of Australia, has a long reputable career at the UNESCO. Before joining her new role, Vize was the Regional Advisor for Social and Human Sciences Asia-Pacific at the UNESCO Regional Office for Education in Bangkok.  

Mohammad Amir Rashid, president of Dara Shikoh Foundation wrote a letter to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) over Pakistan damaging walls of cultural Heritage site 'Sharda Peeth' located in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir. The President of Dara Shikoh Shikoh Foundation has written to the Director General of UNESCO demanding action against the Government of Pakistan for deliberately damaging some walls of Sharda Peeth for the expansion of a coffee house for Pakistani soldiers inside Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir. Mohammad Amir Rashid said "We have written a letter to the Director General of UNESCO, who has recently given the place of Vice President to Pakistan and the site was Sharda Peeth, which was declared a cultural heritage, yet the Pakistani government there has deliberately damaged some walls of Sharda Peeth for the expansion of a coffee house being built for Pakistani soldiers inside POK. while there is also a court order that it has to preserve the cultural heritage, despite that, the Pakistani army deliberately hurt the sentiments of the Indian people and especially the beliefs of the Hindu people across the country on the anniversary of 26/11." The president of Dara Shikoh Foundation also mentioned another temple in his letter to the UNESCO which has been systematically damaged. "This incident has been specifically carried out so that their radical thinking gets promoted somewhere and under the guise of a coffee house, they are damaging the Sharda Peeth despite the strict instructions of the Supreme Court. There is also Hinglaj temple there and within three-four weeks the temples have been systematically damaged," Mohammad Amir Rashid added. He further demanded that the UNESCO should take action in the matter and must take rehabilitation and conservation work in it's hand. "We have demanded in the letter that the UNESCO Director General should call the local representative and since UNESCO itself has declared it as cultural heritage, then rehabilitation and revival of Sharda Peeth should be done to conserve it," he added. Sharada Peeth is a ruined Hindu temple and ancient centre of learning located in the Neelum Valley of PoK. It is situated in the valley of Mount Harmukh, believed by Kashmiri Pandits to be the abode of Shiva. The reconstruction of Maa Sharda's temple in Kupwara is a necessary and important step in the direction of the discovery of Sharda civilisation and the promotion of Sharda-script. As one of the Maha Shakti Peethas, Hindus believe that it represents the spiritual location of the Goddess Sati's fallen right hand. Sharada Peeth is one of the three holiest sites of pilgrimage for Kashmiri Pandits, alongside the Martand Sun Temple and the Amarnath Temple.   Source: ANI

Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Sunday said the UNESCO-Bangladesh Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman International Award will help spread the ideology of Bangabandhu globally with further internationalisation of his work, life and achievements. "Bangladesh and Bangabandhu are one and unique which was reflected in the name of the award. This award will play a role in branding Bangladesh and boosting its image globally," he told reporters at his office. The UNESCO Executive Board unanimously adopted a proposal for the establishment of UNESCO-Bangladesh Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman International Prize in the field of the creative economy. It will reward global initiatives of youth in the field of creative economy. The proposal was adopted at the plenary of the virtual segment of the 210th Executive Board, according to UNESCO. The decision came as Bangladesh is celebrating the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman through yearlong programmes. The 210th Session of the UNESCO Executive Board is being held in two segments. The first segment was held from December 2-11 virtually.   Dr Momen said for the first time any UN agency introduced an international award in the name of Bangabandhu. "We all are very proud of it." He said the UNESCO having 193 member States finds culture as the powerful element in building peace and harmony in which Bangabandhu believed. The document containing the decision has been uploaded on UNESCO website for the Executive Board, Dr Momen said. Having unflinching faith in the power of culture to build and sustain peace and social cohesion, Bangladesh tabled a proposal to institute a prize titled “UNESCO Bangladesh Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman International Prize" for the Creative Economy. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent a proposal to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and it was sent to UNESCO through Bangladesh Mission in Paris upon approval from the Prime Minister in August 2019, Dr Momen said. The award will be given every two years and the prize money will be US$ 50,000. It will be given in November next year at the 41st General Conference of UNESCO for the first time, he said. Through introducing this award in Mujib Borsho, the UNESCO directly joined the celebrations of birth centenary of Bangladesh’s founding father. In 2017, the UNESCO enlisted Bangabandhu's March 7 speech in "Memory of the World".  In 1999, UNESCO honoured Bangladesh by declaring February 21 as International Mother Language Day. Dr Momen said UNESCO introduced international awards in the name of 23 famous individuals and institutions and this is for the first time that it introduced such award for a Bangladeshi and widely respected personality. On behalf of Bangladesh, Ambassador of Bangladesh to France and Permanent Delegate to UNESCO Kazi Imtiaz Hossain conveyed deep appreciation to members of the Board who have conveyed their support to the proposal. Bangladesh says it is strongly committed to multilateralism and believes, through building and harnessing partnership and working in concert, they can successfully overcome present and future challenges, no matter how daunting they may be. Despite many challenges, the Board finally agreed to adopt all decisions taken during this segment, and not wait till the completion of the second segment to adopt all decisions as a whole.    The second and the final segment of the Session will be held 'in presentia' mode from January 20-27 next year.   Earlier, Bangladesh's proposal was considered and approved by the Joint Meeting of the Programme and External Relations Commission and the Finance and Administrative Commission on December 9. The Joint Commission recommended the adoption of the decision at the plenary which was done on December 11. The Executive Board recognised the potential of the creative sector to provide young people with economically and environmentally sustainable jobs, in line with the UNESCO Operational Strategy on Youth 2014-2021. It also recognised the necessity to encourage women in the creative economy, in line with UNESCO’s global priority gender equality. The UNESCO-Bangladesh Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman International Prize for the Creative Economy will create a knowledge-sharing mechanism by capturing, celebrating and communicating best practice in the development of creative entrepreneurship, according to UNESCO document. The objectives of the UNESCO-Bangladesh Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman International Prize for the Creative Economy are in line with strategic objective 8 of UNESCO’s Medium-Term Strategy for 2014-2021 and with the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. The historic March 7 speech of Bangabandhu was inscribed in UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register in 2017, and in 2019, UNESCO’s General Conference, at its 40th session, decided that UNESCO will be associated with the birth centenary celebrations of Bangabandhu in 2020-2021. The Prize reflects Bangabandhu’s early work as a youth change-maker and his belief in gender and social equity and youth empowerment. The Prize will be fully managed and administered by UNESCO Source: UNB AH

Thai Cultural Minister Itthiphol Kunplome on Friday announced that the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has formally added traditional Thai massage to its intangible cultural heritage list, following the traditional Khon dance that had already been listed. The announcement was made at the ongoing Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage's 14th session in Bogota, Colombia. "Thai massage is an aspect of traditional medicinal wisdom that is related to Buddhist teachings and local cultures," said Itthiphol, adding "Thai traditional massage is now recognized as a form of alternative medicinal therapy, applicable to modern medicine." The minister said the enlisting of Thai traditional massage into UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage list also promotes the Thai tourism industry. Source: Xinhua/UNB AH

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday announced that the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) together with Bangladesh will celebrate the ‘Mujib Borsho’. She made the announcement while speaking at a preparatory meeting to celebrate the ‘Mujib Borsho’ held at her official residence Ganobhaban. Bangladesh will celebrate the ‘Mujib Borsho’ from March 17, 2020 to March 26, 2021 through various programs marking the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. UNESCO took the decision at its 40th General Assembly held at its headquarters in Paris recently. President of the UNESCO General Assembly Altay Cengizer and its Director General Audrey Azoulay were present at the assembly. Education Minister Dr Dipu Moni, who was present at the preparatory meeting to celebrate the ‘Mujib Borsho’, briefly described different aspects of the UNESCO’s decision. She said UNESCO took the decision unanimously at the plenary session of its 40th General Assembly held at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris on November 25 to celebrate the ‘Mujib Borsho’ together with Bangladesh. Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was born at Tungiparha in Gopalganj on March 17, 1920.  A year after his 100th birth anniversary, Bangladesh will celebrate the golden jubilee of independence on March 26, 2021. Programs on different occasions such as Bangabandhu’s Homecoming Day, Awami League’s founding anniversary, National Mourning Day and Jail Killing Day will be organized in coordination with the ‘Mujib Borsho’. Source: UNB AH

The name of Shital Pati is listed in the World Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO. The organization declared it on Wednesday. The conference of International Association to Preserve Intangible Cultural Heritage is going on in Jeju Island of South Korea. In the last episode of the conference the matter of Shital Pati, the traditional crafts of Sylhet in Bangladesh came in. A delegation team led by Secretary of the National Museum Mohammad Shawkat Nabi is taking part in the conference. Two renowned craftsmen of Sylhet region Gitesh Chandra and Harendra Kumar Das are in the delegation team. They are performing the weaving techniques of Shital Pati there. Moreover, high quality Shital Pati brought from Bangladesh is being displayed there. Earlier, Baul song, Jamdani weaving, Mongol Shovajatra got their places in the list of UNESCO. Besides, on 30th October UNESCO recognized the 7th March speech of father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as the World Documentary Heritage. Once upon a time Shital Pati was very popular in England, France and Russia. It took its place in the British royal palace of Queen Victoria. Foreigners used to take Shital Pati of Balaganj from Sylhet along with Moslin of Dhaka as souvenir. Somebody also calls the traditional Shital Pati of Sylhet region as Nakshi Pati. It was also mentioned in our folk literature. The weaver of this Pati is called ‘Patial’ or ‘Patikor’. AH